Yep, guy companion this time would be awesome. Or basically anyone that is not pretty-young-girl-making-gaga-eyes-at-the-doctor. That's why I loved Donna Noble so much, because she was not in love with him.

Yes! Donna totally won me over. My partner suggested that Oswin/souffle girl might be awesome cos she is smarter than the doctor, and his companions (and women generally - with the exception of River Song) don't usually get to be smarter than him, which is cool. But I think that other companions have been smarter than him, just different kinds of smart. Like, the doctor-Donna, she was awesome. And even before that, with her "super-temp" skills.... I think it'd be really really boring to have a show with two show-offy technical geniuses, which is what it might turn into with Oswin given what we saw in this episode.

Craig and Stormaggedon/Alfie would be hilarious as companions.

I am still really hopeful that this series will turn out to be awesome, but I guess I'm just not that into Matt Smith as the Doctor really..... Oh well. We shall see.

_________________If I chew on garlic that's been in a vagina, isn't that exploiting SOMEONE? - coldandsleepyAfter all, you can't spell Richard Dawkins without "dickwad". - EmperorTomatoKetchup

I do love goofy wee choob Rory, but in comparison to Amy... and especially comparing re: peoples' downers on Amy, I think she is way more awesome than people have given her credit for. People talk of revisionism with regard to what's been going on in storylines, but I think there's a hell of a lot of it going on with perceptions of Rose et al as companions.

_________________#sexysocialism

"I will take a drugged, sex-crazed, punk rock commie over Mrs. Thatch any day of the week" - Vantine

I feel like there's probably an invisible Amy Pond only I can see who's a total badass.

I liked her in The Girl Who Waited (mostly old Amy). And I think she's sometimes awesome. I just never really connected much with any of the characters in the 11th Doctor episodes, and prefer some of the other companions (who I agree definitely have their own faults and whatever - and Rose definitely fits the "pretty girl making gaga-eyes at the Doctor" mould....). I think Rory is great, though, mostly because I am a (not so) closet romantic and you know, the whole Last Centurion thing (I know it's really dorky and cheesy).

_________________If I chew on garlic that's been in a vagina, isn't that exploiting SOMEONE? - coldandsleepyAfter all, you can't spell Richard Dawkins without "dickwad". - EmperorTomatoKetchup

I do think Amy is badass! She's really gutsy, I think, but that also gets her in trouble. Or she has shitty luck. I mean, obviously she has taken care of herself, like in The Girl Who Waited. But she also jumps into things, like the Vampire of Venice episode where she volunteered to join the school when noone really wanted her to, to get shiitake done.

So, she's not really a damsel even if she gets distressed, ya know? Yeah, enemies have definitely used her as a tool too, and she was super trusting of the doctor, but its not ALL damsel in distress.

_________________Evolved a vascular system, so I went from bryophyte to lycophyte.

Ok, I liked this episode heaps better. I think it hit the tone of campy, silly fun with hints of serious stuff better than the last one. I think the first episode seemed kind of all over the place, and seemed to favour quick conclusions (ie Amy and Rory's falling-out) rather than starting to establish a story arc. I liked the way they started setting up the departure of the Ponds much better in this episode, and I generally liked the story better.

Although I hate that Nefertiti and misogynist dude hooked up. Ugh.

_________________If I chew on garlic that's been in a vagina, isn't that exploiting SOMEONE? - coldandsleepyAfter all, you can't spell Richard Dawkins without "dickwad". - EmperorTomatoKetchup

Him and his thermos and his sandwiches and his dangling legs and ahhhhhh! So Wilf-y. So cute.

Re: 'story arc'. It has been reported/quoted here that they are not doing a series arc this year and are all up in 'movie of the week', doing it all in a single episode to appeal to Americans who apparently have no attention span to speak of...

_________________#sexysocialism

"I will take a drugged, sex-crazed, punk rock commie over Mrs. Thatch any day of the week" - Vantine

Okay, I'm already tired of this appeal to the American attention span (especially because if we're watching Dr. Who in the first place, we're probably ready to be patient). All the episodes so far start of really well and then come to some abrupt or tidy ending because the time's run out and the storyline needs more room.

This is more irritating than the "When I was little girl" introduction by Amy.

_________________"So often I wish Adam were a real boy." - interrobang?!"If he was you'd hear him farting at the back of your yoga class." - 8ball

Okay, I'm already tired of this appeal to the American attention span (especially because if we're watching Dr. Who in the first place, we're probably ready to be patient). All the episodes so far start of really well and then come to some abrupt or tidy ending because the time's run out and the storyline needs more room.

This is more irritating than the "When I was little girl" introduction by Amy.

I agree. Case in point: most recent episode. The boxes! It all started off so promisingly...... and then turned into nothingness at the end. Where was the conflict? Where was the magically coming up with a solution at the last minute that almost fails and then somehow, improbably, works? Ugh.

Also, my partner thinks that 'A Town Called Mercy' was the most boring Dr Who episode they have ever seen. I'm sort of inclined to agree.

_________________If I chew on garlic that's been in a vagina, isn't that exploiting SOMEONE? - coldandsleepyAfter all, you can't spell Richard Dawkins without "dickwad". - EmperorTomatoKetchup

Yeah, I wish they would give the stories however much time they need to be told properly, whether that be one episode or five. The official reason given for only doing one-episode stories was that every time they had a two-parter, ratings (in the UK) would be good for the first part, but poor for the second. I don't understand that; wouldn't people want to find out how the story is resolved?

Maybe the shorter stories do appeal to Americans, though. The guy bagging groceries at the supermarket tonight told me he is really enjoying the recent episodes and he thinks the current season/series is "really good". Also I'm pretty sure he wants to be BFFs now. I can understand his excitement, though, because it seems like 99.9% of the people around here haven't even heard of Doctor Who, so when you meet someone else who watches the show, it does seem like a big deal.

Okay, I'm already tired of this appeal to the American attention span (especially because if we're watching Dr. Who in the first place, we're probably ready to be patient). All the episodes so far start of really well and then come to some abrupt or tidy ending because the time's run out and the storyline needs more room.

This is more irritating than the "When I was little girl" introduction by Amy.

I agree. Case in point: most recent episode. The boxes! It all started off so promisingly...... and then turned into nothingness at the end. Where was the conflict? Where was the magically coming up with a solution at the last minute that almost fails and then somehow, improbably, works? Ugh.

Also, my partner thinks that 'A Town Called Mercy' was the most boring Dr Who episode they have ever seen. I'm sort of inclined to agree.

buuuutttttt, Ben Browder is SO DREAMY. I could watch him saunter around for hours.

_________________I am not a troll. I am TELLING YOU THE ******GOD'S TRUTH****** AND YOU JUST DON'T WANT THE HEAR IT DO YOU?

Maybe it's a reaction to people not liking last season's season-long story…?

I really do hope something will come of the hint that this "arc" may be out of order. So far there have been things that might be timey wimey (e.g. Henry VIII cropping up occasionally), but hopefully there will be something more definite to tie it all together and make each episode less discrete.